Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Li Qingxia got up early to boil water, looked at the gray sky outside, and sighed.

Although it was September, he felt that September in the northern border was much more comfortable than staying here. If it weren't for this trip, he would still be choosing fish at this time, right?

There is a two-hour time difference. The sun rises at around eight o'clock here, while it is not long after dawn there.

Li Qingxia was boiling water on a small honeycomb coal stove, but he felt something was wrong - why couldn't he just use a big pot and a big stove? But firewood and coal were hard to buy.

Just hold on, and you’ll be back to northern Xinjiang after a while.

He himself was quite puzzled. He had lived here for 60 years, so he should have gotten used to it. But he had only lived there for less than three years, so why did he feel more comfortable there?
After summarizing it, I realized that when I lived there, there were abundant materials, plenty of money, and no worries about food and drink. Besides, the families of my two sons in Ma County were well off and basically had nothing to lack.

Unlike here, after being away for more than two years, I used to be able to tolerate some things, but now I can’t tolerate them anymore.

He didn't know that this should be summed up in two sentences: "It is easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but it is difficult to go from extravagance to frugality."

I simply cooked some cornmeal paste, fried some cabbage, and ate the sesame cakes I bought the day before. The sesame cakes from my hometown are delicious, and I will bring some back for my children and grandchildren when I return home after finishing my work.

Apart from anything else, the Northern Xinjiang cannot compare with it in this respect.

Before we finished our breakfast, some villagers came to the yard to chat and ask about the situation in northern Xinjiang.

Lilou is similar to other villages, with a large population and little land. On average each person can get less than one acre of land. People can barely make ends meet by farming, but don't expect to make any money.

Many people in the Li family went out, and many of them ate commercial grain. Even if they didn't eat commercial grain, looking at Li Qingxia's behavior when he came back, it was obvious that he had made money.

Therefore, many people want to inquire about the situation in Northern Xinjiang and see if they can go there to try their luck.

After all, even though many members of the Li family have gone there and seem to have made a way out, in the minds of most people, the Northern Frontier is a bitter and cold place, and going there might be equivalent to being exiled, which is full of uncertainties.

Not to mention this time, even in the 21st century, most people still think so, and still feel that the northern border is full of desert and sandstorms.

The prejudice in people's minds is like a mountain, which is really not easy to move away.

If Li Long were to describe this situation today, he would use an analogy that many people in the mainland looked at Northern Xinjiang at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries just like foreigners who have never been to the country look at China.

A barbarian land.

Except for a few Chinese players.

Li Qingxia has also learned to talk about some of the advantages of the Northern Frontier, but of course he still talks about some of the difficulties most of the time. He doesn't want to take another group of people there now -

Those who came to ask about Li Qingxia now, although all had the surname Li, most of them were within the fifth degree of generation and could call him grandfather or great-grandfather, but in fact they were divided into several branches.

Because the family tree is about to be revised, he, the patriarch, is quite popular. These people come here not only to talk to him about the affairs of the Northern Frontier, but also to report to him some personnel changes in their own family.

Li Qingxia confiscated it.

"Third Grandfather, how can you not accept him?" said an old man in his fifties who was of the same generation as Li Junfeng. "You are the patriarch. There are four branches in our Li family, spring, summer, autumn and winter. You are the oldest in our second branch and you are also the direct descendant. If you don't accept him, who will?"

"Just hand it over to Anmin when the time comes." Li Qingxia said happily, "My title as clan leader doesn't count anymore.

Ten years have passed, and our ancestral hall and tablets are gone. Everyone is looking after themselves. I will be going to the northern border again in the future, so I will let Anmin take care of this branch."

Li Qingxia actually had this idea a long time ago. His children and grandchildren are all in the northern border, and they are all living very well. The little land here has now been taken away by the team.

The homestead is still there, after all, the ancestral grave is still there, I guess the captain is just pretending to be confused.

But he didn't care too much. Anyway, he planned to live in the Northern Frontier in the future. Even if the house was taken away in the end, then just let it be. He would come back every few years to pay homage to his ancestors, and his grandchildren would come back to claim the place when they grew up.

He could see that his eldest and second sons were better, but Li Long simply had no thoughts about his hometown and was too lazy to even go back.

After living in the northern border for two years, he has become open-minded. When people grow up, they will definitely have their own ideas. People like Team 4 who come from all over the world live a simple life. Their ancestral home is a thought for them, but it is not a must.

It’s just like the specific reason why Li Jianguo came to Northern Xinjiang. Wasn’t it because he couldn’t stand staying in Lilou any longer and couldn’t see any future?
Therefore, he had no intention of occupying the position of patriarch.

Listening to his words, others didn't know what to say.

Li Anmin came over in the afternoon.

"Uncle San, how could you say that?" Li Anmin rode his bicycle to the yard, looked at Li Qingxia drying things, and complained as he got off his bicycle, "How could the clan leader spread rumors? After all, it's your clan - it's time to build a country!"

"Jianguo has settled down in the northern border, and his household registration is there, so how can he be the chief here?" Li Qingxia said with a smile, "My whole family has gone there, and we rarely come back. You know a lot of people in our area, and everyone respects you. The captains are all your students. It's not an exaggeration to say that you have students and old friends all over the county. You are the most suitable person to be the chief."

Li Anmin wanted to explain, but Li Qingxia waved his hand and said:

"I'm telling you this from the bottom of my heart. Of the three brothers in my generation, your eldest uncle and his son passed away early. You are the most promising one in my second brother's family. Among the three brothers of Jianguo on my side, Xiaolong is the most promising one, but he is not interested in this and has no plans to come back, so you must be the clan leader."

"Xiaolong has made progress?" Li Anmin knew that Li Qingxia was not going to change this. He was going to compile the family tree and annals of major events. When he heard Li Qingxia say that Li Long had made progress, he hurriedly asked:

"What happened to him? Did he eat commercial grain?"

"No, he refused to join the army even though he was asked to. However, he won the title of Advanced Individual for National Unity at the autonomous region level last year. Can this be recorded in the annals of events?"

"Yes, yes, of course. Not to mention entering the family tree, if Xiaolong's household registration is here, it might even be recorded in the county annals." Li Anmin is familiar with the people who compile the county annals and knows that these people often collect such information. If someone in the county is really commended at the provincial level, it will naturally be recorded in the annals of the year.

"Hey, I didn't expect Xiaolong to receive such treatment..." Li Qingxia smiled and changed the subject:

"Did your mother drink that wine? Was there any effect?"

"Yes, it works really well!" Li Anmin walked over to help Li Qingxia and said, "My mother drank it the day before, and she felt much better when she woke up the next morning. She usually spends most of her time in bed, and sometimes even eats in bed. Today the weather is good, so she can get up and bask in the sun outside."

Is the weather good today?

Li Qingxia looked up at the sky and wanted to refute it, but then he thought, yes, according to the weather here, this is a good day. Of course, in fact, you can see it when the sun is shining at noon, so it is a good day.

"Okay, I'll bring back two baskets and let your mother drink them first. Your basket will be almost done after you finish it. If not, I'll send it to you later when I get back. I'll keep this basket for future use."

In order to facilitate carrying, Li Long put it in a small one-liter plastic cage for Li Qingxia. The wine is strong enough, and the real bones soaked in it plus other medicinal materials are very effective and work very quickly.

"Okay, okay." Li Anmin's tone was full of gratitude. It was not easy for his mother to raise him and his brother after their father passed away. This disease was also caused by the exhaustion at that time.

He also thought of many ways to cure his mother's illness, but on the one hand, his financial situation did not allow it, and on the other hand, chronic diseases of the elderly require nursing, and if the illness is serious, it will be really difficult to recover.

Who would have thought that a cage of wine could cure it?
Not to mention whether it can cure the disease, but at least it is much better than those plasters.

"Oh, Third Uncle, no matter if you become the clan leader or not, you have to include the names of Jianguo, Anguo, Xiaolong and their descendants in the family tree. You tell me and I'll write it, including Xiaolong's story."

"No, no, I have already listed them before I came." Li Qingxia knew that he was about to get to the point, so he stopped, went into the house, took out an envelope, handed it to An Min and said:

"Look, it's all in there."

Li Anmin took it, opened it and said with a smile:

"Uncle San, you are still thinking too much. I don't need to sort it out anymore..."

"Anmin, my uncle has a favor to ask of you." Li Qingxia said while sitting on the doorstep.

"What are you begging for?" Li Anmin said as he flipped through the contents. "Uncle, the wine you brought back cured my mother's illness. My mother also said that she would take time to invite you over for dinner to thank you. Just tell me what you want to say. As long as I can do it..."

"Then add all the people on this paper to the family tree. I know you must be in a difficult situation, but I came back this time just to do this. If I can't do it well, I will be too embarrassed to go back..."

Li Qingxia spoke so seriously that Li Anmin immediately looked through the names on the paper.

In order to let Li Anmin see clearly, the thread on the paper was clearly listed, from Li Qingxia and Du Chunfang down, four lines were drawn down, three sons and one daughter, and everything after that was written clearly. Li Anmin had heard of Li Qingxia's branch, and he scanned it. Except for seeing the two sons under Li Long's name, he had never heard of them, but everyone else, including the children, knew about them.

He asked Li Qingxia in some surprise:

"Uncle San, there are no outsiders here, so everyone can write it down. What's the point of asking for it?"

"What I mean is, when we continue, we should use the current name..." Li Qingxia emphasized.

"What?" Li Anmin understood and was in trouble.

This matter is really difficult to handle.

I have never heard of women's names being included in the continuation of the family tree. Males are recorded but not females. Whether it is a daughter-in-law who marries into the clan or a newborn daughter, only the person is recorded but not the name.

If we really want to add people, it will be very troublesome if they point it out later.

"Anmin, the last time the genealogy was updated, I was still young, it was during the Republic of China." Li Qingxia said, "At that time, a scholar from the Qing Dynasty was responsible for compiling the update, and the clan leaders of Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter were responsible for reviewing the manuscript.

How do you review it? Isn't it just to see if your own post is complete? So, as long as you add it, no one will read it during the review. "

"But after it's printed, someone will read it." Li Anmin smiled bitterly, "After it's printed, each department will be given a copy. If someone finds out then, they will scold me."

"Who will scold me then?" Li Qingxia smiled slyly, "It's already been printed, so why should I scold you? Then you can push it to me and say that I gave it according to the regulations. It wasn't there when you edited it, and you don't know how it was added later."

"Uncle San, are you trying to push the issue around and make a confusing account?" Li Anmin's eyes lit up.

"Yes, you are not the only one who can do this. There are also stonemasons. You can say you don't know. I will be in the northern border at that time, and no one can ask me to verify it, right?" Li Qingxia said with a smile:
"We all believe in gender equality in our country, so this family tree should have been revised. But I can only speak for my branch, and I can't make decisions for others. I live well in the northern border because my children are filial. What can I do? Isn't it just to see if there is any idea in this regard?"

Li Anmin understood.

He pondered, in fact, think about it, the family tree has four volumes, spring, summer, autumn and winter, and usually each branch examines its own branch. Who has time to take care of others? There is a lot of room for operation at this time.

His thoughts were very complicated. On the one hand, he admired his uncle's courage. It was not easy for people of this age to figure out this aspect. His uncle was able to take the initiative to take on this matter for his descendants, which showed his responsibility.

On the other hand, he was also hesitant. His mother got better after drinking the wine brought by his uncle, and it can be seen that as long as she continues to drink this wine, she will get better, not to mention she will be the same as a normal person, but at this speed she will be almost the same.

It seems that my mother has laughed more these two days than I have in the past year, and she has stopped sighing as before.

This favor must be repaid.

"Uncle San, I'll take the paper back. I'll think about it first." Li Anmin didn't give a final word and asked again:

"Xiaolong gave birth to two children?"

"Yes, twins," Li Qingxia said proudly, "two sons now. He said he has to save money to buy a house for the children."

"That's amazing." Li Anmin exclaimed in praise, and asked Li Long some more questions, meaning that he could use them when writing the chronicle later.

Among the younger generation, the most promising one in Li Lou is Li Long. There are four branches of the Li family, and there is another branch in Lijiaji, south of the county. Li Anmin knows that there are no promising people in the younger generation.

That'll do.

Although they all have the surname Li, there is a distinction between close and distant relatives. Li Anmin is proud that his family has produced a great figure.

After Li Anmin left, Li Qingxia sat on the doorstep for a long time without getting up. Was this matter accomplished?
I can only look forward.

Li Long didn't know that his father Li Qingxia was working hard on the family tree. After scolding Zhang Qiang away, he continued to collect the broom.

To be honest, even if Zhang Qiang and Li Long did not have the conflict last year, Li Long would not have taken up this big broom.

It has been said several times, and the gossip was also spread by Xu Haijun. This year, Li Long plans to set stricter quality requirements than last year, and any products that fail to meet the standards will be taken back.

Anyway, it is impossible for an ordinary worker to earn three dollars and fifty cents a day now, but he has been collecting brooms in the team for the third year. For an experienced worker, it is definitely no problem for him to make five or six brooms a day.

One person's daily income is equivalent to that of three or five workers. If you don't strictly control it, what are you doing?
So when it was almost dark, Li Long had collected less than 150 qualified brooms.

On the one hand, many people in the team were still cutting Stipa sphenanthera, and it would take some time to dry it. On the other hand, his requirements were strict, and some people who wanted to get away with it were rejected by him.

If you are qualified, just pay the money. It is more expensive than last year, so the big broom is naturally happy to be collected.

Now, even if you sell grain, you will most likely get IOUs, but making brooms can get cash, which really solves the urgent needs of many people.

Li Long's reputation in the 1th team +.
When I returned to the yard, pulling the tractor's big broom, it was already dark.

This is what happened in the next few days. We went to Qingshui River to collect in the morning and to the Fourth Team in the afternoon. In two or three days, we would have collected a thousand large brooms and sent them to the supply and marketing cooperative.

The inspection and acceptance at the supply and marketing cooperative was indeed stricter than last year. Fortunately, Li Long attached great importance to this, and did not find any unqualified brooms in the two thousand brooms sent over twice.

Five days later, Li Jianguo and his team returned with the poles, but after returning they ran into the mountain again and pulled the remaining poles that had not been pulled back.

The six men were covered in dust and looked darker and thinner, but they all looked very energetic.

All the poles were tied up separately and Li Jianguo sent them home. On the same day, the team announced on the loudspeaker that these six families had poles, and whoever needed to make brooms and needed poles could go to these six families to buy them.

So Li Long started to collect more brooms, and the fourth team could collect two to three hundred brooms every day.

"Lao San, there's something wrong with the handle of your broom. It's cracked. Change it." Li Long said to Qin Lao San in the team in the yard, "It can't be collected."

"Why can't I collect it? Isn't this pole in good condition?" Qin Lao San explained, "Why can't I see where it's cracked?"

"There are fine cracks on this pole, just twist it and it will come out. People use big brooms for more than just one or two days. The cracks will get bigger when it gets cold in winter and hot in summer." Li Long said, "Either you change the pole or keep it for yourself."

"There are so many brooms at home, please don't make it difficult for me." Qin Lao San still pestered, "Xiao Long, you are going too far, there is no need..."

Li Long glanced at him, took the broom handle and twisted it with both hands, and a wide crack appeared. He looked at Qin Lao San and said:

"Should I use a little more force, the pole will break."

“No, no…” Qin Lao San blushed, “Alright, alright, this doesn’t count, I’ll take it…”

"It would have been better if it had been done earlier." Xu Dejun, who was waiting behind, said, "Why do you have to attract people's attention? It would be embarrassing to carry a big broom like this!"

Qin Laosan blushed, took the seven dollars handed over by Li Long, and ran away in shame.

Li Long smiled and continued checking.

The work is almost halfway done. Every time I deliver brooms to the supply and marketing cooperative, they pay me by quantity, and the process is very fast.

The mood is better than collecting Fritillaria, this kind of work is really comfortable.

Li Qingxia, who was in his hometown, finally received the notice after a rather anxious wait. All the members of the Li family from spring, summer, autumn and winter had arrived, and the content added to the family tree had also been compiled. Now it was time for the clan leaders and representatives to review it.

It was only then that Li Qingxia realized that his in-laws, Liang Donglou's Liang family, were also continuing their family tree.

It’s just that Liang Donglou sent some money back, but he himself didn’t come back.

It's really different.

But no matter what he does, I will try my best to get this done. (End of this chapter)